Greater London, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

“Deserving its many plaudits” – this “model gastropub” near the Old Vic remains one of London’s most popular food pubs and still “delivers on all fronts”. “Service is engaging and lively” and provides “expert cuisine” that mixes Mediterranean dishes with those of more traditional British inspiration, alongside “very drinkable” wine. The interior is “noisy and busy but that’s part of the buzzy ambience” and while “it’s a biggish room, it’s still best to book”.

“The location and setting are the stars” at this spectacular venue – the flagship restaurant of the Brutalist Southbank arts centre, with plate-glass windows offering “wonderful views” over the Thames. Part of D&D London, the restaurant has long struggled to do its surroundings justice, with an often-“mediocre” offering that leaves even supporters regretting the “well done, if rather unimaginative menu”.

“Still adore the room but the food should get a leg up at that price” – a verdict that has for many years dogged this landmark venue. Even though it’s the cheaper section of the large operation run by D&D London, “you’re most certainly paying for the location, when there are similarly priced restaurants along the South Bank which are much better”.

2021 Review: For some reporters, the National Theatre’s “brisk” in-house diner delivers on the “plain good food near the theatre” you’d hope for, so “it’s a shame” that the “food is complacently ordinary” for too many others to make it a reliable recommendation. Top Tip – “best when you can sit in the garden”.

2022 Review: “The set menu is good value” at the National Theatre’s most salubrious in-house dining option, so it’s “always reliable” as a pre-show pit-stop. But critics would welcome a bit more ambition, saying the current effort is “a wasted opportunity” given the site and its captive audience. Top Tip: “the waiters are always a good source of play reviews”.

2021 Review: Gordon Ramsay’s “Italian-leaning” warehouse conversion in Southwark, with an indoor ‘olive grove’ complete with trees, pleases some with its “giant portions of great food” and “fantastic cocktails”. Far too many reporters this year, though, complain of a “sterile” aspect to its “industrial” decor, and dismiss the fare as mightily “uninspired”.

“This beautiful space by the river” – the stylish dining room of a South Bank hotel, designed by Tom Dixon – has “a wonderful view if you get a table by the window” and “plenty of space between the tables, so conversation is easy”. Standards in other respects, though, have been up-and-down over many years.

“OK, but I have always thought it too expensive” is sadly one of the more enthusiastic reports we received this year on this South Bank landmark, whose “great views” over the Thames and St Paul’s are less of a rarity than when it first launched in 1996 with the opening of so many rooftops nowadays. Over three-quarters of feedback here are nominations for either ‘most overpriced’ or ‘most disappointing’ meal of the year in our annual diners’ poll. The modern British menu is too often judged “expensive and tasteless”, which it shouldn’t be when a bowl of chips costs £9. “It’s so disappointing because its great views and location should make it a fantastic restaurant”. “A tourist trap if ever I’ve seen one”.

“A most enjoyable meal in an attractive setting” is reported by just over half of reporters visiting the cheaper section of this rooftop landmark on the South Bank. The remainder, though, “expect much, much better at these prices”: “it has a great view but very disappointing food and service – trading off its location!”

2021 Review: “A firm favourite for breakfast and brunch in Southwark” – this café-style fixture a short stroll from Tate Modern serves “a great menu to suit all tastes”, and fans say it’s “unbeatable”.

A particularly solid choice for brunch – this “buzzy” Kiwi-run chain (with seven branches) fits the bill well, with “interesting small plates” of pan-global fusion food and an emphasis on notably good coffee (which they roast in-house). On the downside, the food is often “passable and no more” and their “lively” interiors (Granary Square in particular) can become “hopelessly crowded”, giving rise to incidents of “slapdash service”. Still, they’re “fun” and “reasonably priced”. (See also Vardo).

With its “great view over the river”, the sixth-floor restaurant in this converted power station opposite St Paul’s Cathedral is a “really rather splendid place for a decent set lunch”. The food is “better than expected, perhaps better than it needed to be” – “appropriately arty”, too, with dishes inspired by artists on display in the gallery. (Over at Tate Britain, “the Rex Whistler dining room is sorely missed and a real loss” – its closure brought about by a combination of Covid and dilemmas about the depiction of slavery in its Whistler murals, nowadays deemed ‘unequivocally… offensive’.)

This quietly ambitious kitchen at Lambeth’s Garden Museum is a real magnet for diners in-the-know (“I’d happily eat here once a week if I lived locally – it’s always different!”). Former Noble Rot head chef Myles Donaldson delivers a daily changing lunch menu that’s not vegetarian or even vegan, but strong on both camps and on delivering “good, healthy food”. The interior is simple, but enhanced by floor-to-ceiling windows looking onto the street and into the garden. (There’s also coffee, cakes, etc all day).